Macbeth

712 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: What extent is lady macbeth the villain

The notion of Macbeth being a good and noble man is indeed a matter in which great uncertainty arises; as is the notion that Macbeth was bought down by ‘his evil wife’. In Macbeth, one of Shakespeare’s’ most famous tragedies, I am uncertain of the character of Macbeth, as throughout the text, happenings which both support and put down the good character of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are apparent.

At the beginning of the play, Macbeth seems to be true to the statement that he is a good and noble gentlemen, due to his brave acts in the war fought for his country. We hear Macbeth being referred to as “‘O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman’(Act 1, Scene 2, Line 24) by King Duncan, who is considered noble and honest by all around him. In a retold story form of the play, the statement is made ; “It seemed that Scotland’s fate, the people’s lives, his own, were cradled in the vast courage of this warrior’s breast'; represents the picture painted of Macbeth early in the piece.
The fact that Macbeth was chosen as Thane of Cowdor is another representation of the confidence that the king and the people of the time had in Macbeth’s character. When King Duncan announced Macbeth’s rise to Thane, he referred to him as “noble Macbeth';(Line 69)

The first flaw we see in the character of Macbeth and the first signs of the evil power Lady Macbeth has over her husband, come late in the first act. In this part of the story (Act 1, Scene 5) Lady Macbeth and Macbeth are discussing the murder of King Duncan planned for that night. We hear of Macbeth’s uncertainty of committing the crime, however lady Macbeth taunts him until she convinces him to commit the murder. This shows the mental weakness in Macbeth’s character.
The famous quote in Act 1 Scene 5 Line 42, where Lady Macbeth calls on the spirits to “fill me from crown to toe top-full of direst cruelty!'; shows the definite malevolent and evil characteristics Lady Macbeth possesses. As it was Lady Macbeth’s idea to Kill King Duncan, we establish at this point in the story that Lady Macbeth undoubtedly has an evil control over her husband ; Macbeth.
Before the first murder, we see the extreme unease Macbeth has about the crime which he is about to commit. Macbeth hallucinates (sees a vision) of the murder weapon before his eyes.

Show More
Related

  • Macbeth

    759 Words  | 2 Pages

    The songs that I will be dedicating in this play are for the character Macbeth. He is the most unique entity who is constantly changing his personality and developing more evil traits. These songs will represent all of the Macbeth’s major characteristics and the events that led to demonstrating and revealing what kind of person he is. Every crime he committed had a big consequence on his conscience. The lyrics or the mood of the song will, in some way, describe Macbeth and his behavior in this play.

    Read More

  • Lady Macbeth The Real Power Behind the Throne

    1130 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lady Macbeth takes the role of the dominant partner in the beginning of the play, by acting as the real power behind the throne. For example, it is easily recognized that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are opposite in many ways (Scott 236). He is weak, indecisive, and takes on the traditional female role of the marriage; she is strong, decisive, and takes on the traditional male role. One place in the play where Macbeth’s character is shown is Act I, Scene 5, Lines 15-17. She says, “Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be / What thou art promis’d : yet do I fear thy nature / Is too full o’ the milk of human kindness.” This is just after Lady Macbeth receives the letter from Macbeth. It is also important to notice that when Macbeth’s first thoughts of killing Duncan appear, he is scared. After he commits the murder, Macbeth says, “To know my deed, ‘twere best not know myself ” ( 2. 2. 72 ). Knowing that he has committed such a vile act makes him uncomfortable. It will be difficult to act innocent and deal with his guilt.

    Read More

  • Macbeth

    659 Words  | 2 Pages

    Through the chronicles of history there have always been heroes. Men and women that stand up and take charge and are moral leaders of countries. Joan of Arc, Napoleon, Genghis Khan and Churchill are only a few examples of people that are remember eternally for what they have done. There are also other leaders that people would like to forget because they are moral cowards killing their subject and causing evil. Stalin, Fidel Castro, and the Character of Macbeth are all examples of this. Macbeth is a moral coward. During the play Macbeth often shows that he is morale coward. For instance, when he is planning Duncan’s murder. Likewise he also shows cowardice by killing Banquo. Lastly he shows how spineless he is when he orders Macduffs family to be murdered.

    Read More

  • Macbeth: Corruption of Power

    561 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is portrayed as a courageous and well-respected soldier who is loyal to his King and country. He is described by one of King Duncan's men as “brave Macbeth.” As a result of his bravery on the battlefield, Duncan decides to reward Macbeth with a new title – the Thane of Cawdor – as the last Thane was proven to be disloyal; however, Macbeth is unaware of this, and this creates tension in the audience. The opening scenes show that Macbeth is a powerful and courageous man who is not naturally inclined to do wrong, but is capable of being brutal when he needs to be. The meeting with the witches also reveal that Macbeth is a very ambitious man who craves an even greater power. There is contrast between Macbeth’s and Banquo’s attitudes towards the witches’ prophecies. Whilst Banquo dismissed the witches’ prophecies, Macbeth was “rapt withal.” This shows that Macbeth has thought about being “king hereafter.” Macbeth's first soliloquy reveals his deep desire to be king. His soliloquy also reveals that he would do anything to achieve it.

    Read More

  • Essay Comparing Macbeth and Lady Macbeth

    1040 Words  | 3 Pages

    (Well he deserves that name)/ Disdaining fortune, with his brandish steel/. (1.2.17) The rest of the scene consists of other recounts of Macbeth’s success; the thane of Ross informs the king that Macbeth has successfully suppressed the joint efforts of the thane of Cawdor, and the king of Norway. Furthermore, in this scene the king announces that Macbeth is to be promoted as the new thane of Cawdor. In this scene, Macbeth is portrayed as a mighty, patriotic, warrior and a loyal subject to the king. However, as the play progresses, Macbeth deviates from these traits. Macbeth’s encounter with the three witches confuses him.

    Read More

  • Being a Man in Macbeth by William Shakespeare

    559 Words  | 2 Pages

    Although Macbeth's character greatly changes throughout the play, in the beginning, he is seen as a good model of what a man should be like. Known as a "valiant cousin [and a] worthy gentlemen", Macbeth wins the great respect and admiration from his king, Duncan, and his soldiers through his actions on the battlefields. His views on manhood are that one must be loyal to his king, honorable to his friends and honest and loving to his wife. He shows his belief in loyalty to his king by "dar[ing] to do all that may become a man", by fighting seemingly losing battles for the safety of Duncan. Also, the idea of murdering Duncan makes him feel that he would lose his manhood. This is because he feels that if he "dares to be more" that what he is then he is not humble but instead greedy and therefore not a man. Macbeth, as well, shows that although he is cold-hearted on the battlefield, he is not with his wife. Deeply in love with his wife, Macbeth shares everything with her example here. Although this leads him to his eventual doom, his powerful affection towards Lady Macbeth makes him feel complete in his definition of a man.

    Read More

  • Free Macbeth Essays: The Murder of King Duncan

    717 Words  | 2 Pages

    This whole situation comes about because of three witches who wanted to cause trouble for Macbeth. They knew all along what would happen to him in the end. Macbeth is ambitious and the witches played upon that by promising Macbeth great things, such as becoming the king of Scotland, and Thane of Cawdor. Immediately after he talks with the witches, he is by chance entitled, Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth now believes in the witches’ words and honestly believes that the crown of Scotland will fall upon him by natural means. This idea goes awry when Duncan names Malcom his heir. Macbeth then, still believing in the witches, goes on with his plan to murder Duncan.

    Read More

  • Feminism In The Great Gatsby

    1130 Words  | 3 Pages

    Gatsby spent his entire life working up from poverty and finding ways to gain wealth. Through becoming an officer, he meets Daisy, but cannot have her until he can provide for her. This causes him to leave her in order to become wealthy, but as he does this, Daisy marries Tom, not for love, but for money. Even when Gatsby returns, Daisy still has trouble leaving Tom and telling him how she really feels. Perhaps this is because it is so sudden, which also shows how the male characters easily persuade female characters. Daisy had been with Tom for years and now Gatsby shows up, even eats lunch with Tom which is ironic, but expects Daisy to just walk away as if it’s not a big deal. “Tom was feeling the hot whips of panic. His wife and his mistress, until an hour ago secure and inviolate, were slipping precipitately from his control,” (131). This is when Tom begins to realize that he’s losing Daisy, but the important aspect of this situation is what Daisy is trying to get out of this and how the men can easily affect the women. After Daisy allows Jay to get blamed for the murder, and destroy his name for her, it shows how she had never cared about anyone but herself. She might have enjoyed spending time with Gatsby, but if he didn’t have the money that he did, she wouldn’t have even looked at him. Once Gatsby has this power, he is able to pressure Daisy into leaving her

    Read More

  • Comparison Of Perugino And Caravaggio

    1317 Words  | 3 Pages

    The artists of the Baroque had a remarkably different style than artists of the Renaissance due to their different approach to form, space, and composition. This extreme differentiation in style resulted in a very different treatment of narrative. Perhaps this drastic stylistic difference between the Renaissance and Baroque in their treatment of form, space, and composition and how these characteristics effect the narrative of a painting cannot be seen more than in comparing Perugino’s Christ Delivering the Keys of the Kingdom to St. Peter from the Early Renaissance to Caravaggio’s Conversion of St. Paul from the Baroque.Perugino was one of the greatest masters of the Early Renaissance whose style ischaracterized by the Renaissance ideals of purity, simplicity, and exceptional symmetry of composition. His approach to form in Christ Delivering the Keys of the Kingdom to St.Peter was very linear. He outlined all the figures with a black line giving them a sense of stability, permanence, and power in their environment, but restricting the figures’ sense of movement. In fact, the figures seem to not move at all, but rather are merely locked at a specific moment in time by their rigid outline. Perugino’s approach to the figures’themselves is extremely humanistic and classical. He shines light on the figures in a clear, even way, keeping with the rational and uncluttered meaning of the work. His figures are all locked in a contrapposto pose engaging in intellectual conversation with their neighbor, giving a strong sense of classical rationality. The figures are repeated over and over such as this to convey a rational response and to show the viewer clarity. Perugino’s approach to space was also very rational and simple. He organizes space along three simple planes: foreground, middle ground, and background. Christ and Saint Peter occupy the center foreground and solemn choruses of saints and citizens occupy the rest of the foreground. The middle distance is filled with miscellaneous figures, which complement the front group, emphasizing its density and order, by their scattered arrangement. Buildings from the Renaissance and triumphal arches from Roman antiquity occupy the background, reinforcing the overall classical message to the

    Read More

  • Identity in Shakespeare's Macbeth

    912 Words  | 2 Pages

    Macbeth was not evil he was just a man struggling with his identity and trying to be something he was not. He new nothing other than how to be a soldier and he was good at it. In the end he realised it was the only way he could win his battle. “I’ll fight till from me bones me flesh be hacked. Give me my armour.” 5:3:33. Even though Macbeth had become hated and thought of as a tyrant to others he had won his own battle. This becomes clear when at the end of the play Macbeth feels proud to say “My name’s Macbeth.” 5:8:6.

    Read More

  • Role of Visions and Hallucinations in Macbeth

    1232 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Macbeth’s visions and hallucinations play a significant role and contribute to the development of his character. In the play Macbeth, a man is driven to murder his king and his companions after receiving a fairly ambiguous prophecy told by three witches. Although the witches triggered the series of events that later aid Macbeth’s descent into complete insanity, Macbeth is portrayed from the very beginning as a fierce and violent soldier. As the play goes on, several internal conflicts inside of Macbeth become clear. After he performs several bloody tasks, the madness inside of Macbeth is unmistakably visible to everyone around him. As a result of this insanity, he sees visions and hallucinations. Each time Macbeth hallucinates, he plunges further into insanity that is essentially caused by misguided ambition, dread and guilt. Macbeth has three key hallucinations that play a considerably important role in the development of his character: a dagger, the ghost of Banquo, and four apparitions while visiting the prophesying witches.

    Read More

  • Macbeth’s Character Transformation

    386 Words  | 1 Pages

    Initially, Macbeth is a confident man battle-hardened and fearless. He cuts an enemy “from naval to jaw” in battle and seeks to gain glory and power. The captain says, “fear brave Macbeth,” and well he deserved that name. Macbeth is a great warrior and never would consider a murderous act before Lady Macbeth’s interference. The witches’ prophesies do not seem feasible to him at first so he does not act upon them. Lady Macbeth is a wicked woman who does much to affect Macbeth’s overall character.

    Read More

  • The Guilt Between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth

    1041 Words  | 3 Pages

    At the beginning of the novel, Macbeth receives the news that if Duncan, the current king, passed away he would be the next one to the throne. So, Lady Macbeth induces Macbeth into killing Duncan by filling his mind with ambition and planting cruel seeds into his head. After accomplishing his deed of killing the king, he brings out the daggers that were used during the murder, and says, “I’ll go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done; look, don’t again, I dare not.” This is his first crime and Macbeth is already filled with guilt and regret.

    Read More

  • What Is Contingency Approach To Leadership?

    718 Words  | 2 Pages

    Learning about strategy and how the strategy plays a role in leadership in an organization. Leadership value is very specific and is surrounded by principles that should be followed ethically. In a business, there are unethical practices which are up to the decision-maker to be ethical. The course was great and I really learned a lot of insights and the outset of the course.

    Read More

  • Study Habits Essay

    1095 Words  | 3 Pages

    Tip# 3: Don’t Cram. Don’t make excuses. “There’s that party tonight,” or “I can leave that until tomorrow.” It will be all good and dandy until you have three tests on the same day and neglected to study for any of them. Take it from me, a high school senior, it is the scare of the semester and that day will come. You want to be prepared for it and the best way to be prepared is to not cram.

    Read More

More about Macbeth

Open Document